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I’ve been single for a little over three years and sometimes I feel like I’m in hiding. Not on purpose or by choice. I just don’t get approached my men who are looking for relationships. I’m not going to lie; singleness can be lonely and even frustrating. I have experienced a roller coaster of emotions. The highest point is when I was Miss Independent. You know the kind. The type of woman who claims she doesn’t need a man. She’s good on her own. Then at my lowest point when I was feeling down, insecure and believing the enemies lies that I was unlovable. Then I’d have months of coasting going through the days of singleness trying to “cope.” I’d sometimes pray for my future husband to appear the next day as if God was a genie in a bottle.

In a women’s Christian conference I attended called Pinky Promise, one of the speakers, Allyson Rowe, did a sermon about singleness. One thing she said that hit me was that “there is a spiritual attack on the identity of a single women.” Society may look at single women as if we are defeated or pity singles for the lack of a companion.

This causes discontentment and I sometimes find myself trying to fix myself as if I am defected. In an attempt to “fix” myself, I signed up for an online dating site. I knew the minute I finished my online dating profile and went “live” that I was working outside of God’s will. It was solely my flesh and my discontentment that got me to this website to begin with. My flesh convinced me that I was missing out and I needed to put myself out there. The first night I got so many likes, messages, and views. For me, someone who was in hiding for three years, this was an overwhelming experience. My spirit was unsettled and I was not really at peace, but I decided to test it out a little longer.

I got messages from men who were not looking for anything serious, just a good time. Heather Lindsey would call these men – randoms. These are men who were set in my path to cause distraction and to get me off track with God. I had my profile up for two weeks before I deleted it.

Then I realized God did not just hide me from these randoms, He was protecting me from the enemy’s distractions, lies, discontentment, lustful desires, sexual immorality, fornication and ungodly dating. He was covering me from all the spiritual turmoil that comes in an unequally yoked relationship (2 Corinthians 6:14). These experiences also made me think of 1 Corinthians 10:23:

“‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things are helpful. ‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things build up.”

This made me think of a wedding veil. It hides the brides face during the wedding until her husband lifts it up to seal the vows with a kiss. Just like that veil, God is covering me until my future husband finds me. Until then, I will trust and wait patiently for my Mr. Right.

We were blessed with the opportunity to sit down with Miracle Reed, to interview her for our ARE YOU SHE spotlight series. Miracle is a dynamic woman of God who is dedicated to serving God through ministry, evangelism, books and just her everyday life.

Miracle’s Bio

Miracle Reed is a native of Pittsburgh, PA and has been committed to serving God as well as people since 1994 at the age of 7! She was born 3 months premature, weighing 1.6lbs at birth, placing her in the 20th percentile of babies who survive weighing a little over a pound. Not only did the “Great Physician” take over but He allowed the life of one, to prove to all those who would meet her, that nothing is impossible with God. There is no wonder why her name is Miracle!

Under the leadership of Donald Clay- Senior Pastor of Petra International Ministries (a congregation of 1,500 at the time), Miracle ministered her first official sermon at the age of 7 years. This was only a small glimpse of what was to come but yet another indicator that a series of miraculous events would follow her life. Shortly following her first sermon, it was a known fact that Miracle was no average child but indeed called and set aside to inspire and represent God.

It was certainly apparent from the very beginning that her life would be an inspiration to many. She is a graduate of the Marilyn J. Davis School of the Bible where she received her license for ministry as well as a diploma in the Bible. She is also a graduate of Geneva College where she completed her undergraduate studies, receiving Bachelor degrees in both Biblical Studies and Human Services.Her obedience, passion and love for God have given her the opportunities to not only preach, but counsel and pastor in the United States, Caribbean, Canada and now in Africa.She is the author of multiple books including:

She recently developed PO2 (People Overcoming Obstacles) which is a movement that brings forth healing, complete wholeness, family restoration, and inspiration to people around the world that have lost sight of their ability to “overcome obstacles” by conducting workshops, seminars and educational teachings made available through her website.

She believes that the only limit in life is that which we create and that one must be open to God without restraints, to truly live without limits.

The Bible describes Satan in different ways. It describes him as a serpent (Genesis 3:1), a murderer (Psalm 106:37), a dragon (Revelation 12: 9) and a father of lies (John 8:44). His desire is to kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10) and ultimately cause us to turn away from God. When we read about him in scripture we know Satan is no good. So why do we invite the enemy into our homes, jobs and minds? You might say, “What?! I don’t invite him into my life, I’m saved.” But that’s the thing -it is the saved that are under attack and sometimes we let Satan in without even knowing. We are at war and Satan is our enemy. The good news is that we have God fighting with us and for us. With God we’ve already won the battle! However, this will not stop Satan from tryng to come in. So, we must fight with prayer and supplication in order to defeat the enemy.

For my church’s women’s bible study, we are reading this amazing book called Fervent by Priscilla Shirer. I’m only on the second chapter and I’m already ready to war; war against the enemy. Fervent is mainly about prayer. Prayer is our weapon of choice when going against the enemy. It’s not only meant to combat war, it is also our way to express our trust in God. In turn, our trust in Him will increase. By increasing our trust in His plan we are also increasing our faith. The Bible says- “You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.” Mathew 21:22 (NLT) And the enemy knows this! He knows if we pray more our faith will grow. So to decrease our faith he distracts us from prayer. How many times have you got on your knees to pray and all of sudden your phone goes off, or your mind starts racing about other things? These distractions are not coincidences. They are strategies from the enemy. So how do you prepare for the enemies attacks and block his tactics? Here are three ways to prepare for war-

1.) Praying with precession

Priscilla suggested praying with precession to remove distractions. Focus on areas where we know the enemy is attacking. It could be focused prayer on family, friends, job, children, school or whatever. I prayed for my time crunch constraints. I thought I was too busy for prayer. I prayed about this and gave this concern to God. I am now able to get up earlier and pray. I even found a church by my job that opens for their sanctuary for prayer. I like to go there during my lunch break. So now I have time in the middle of the day to pray without the urge to rush through the prayer. I feel at peace during prayer now and I can focus on being in His presence while spending time with Him.

2.) Exercise your prayer life

Another great thing about prayer is that it doesn’t just increase our trust in God, it also makes us dangerous and a threat to the enemy. We become prepared soldiers in this war ready for combat. We become a threat to the enemy’s kingdom. A few of my friends are in the army and they told me about the preparation and training they had to do for a career in the armed forces. Gurgling boots camps, long days of training and a lot of exercise, to test endurance. They endured weeks and weeks of this preparation beforehand. Why? To prepare for a possible attack. This is what we need to do in our prayer life. We need to exercise our faith with prayer. We need to have prayer and worship “boot camps” to make sure we can endure the attacks that will come with the enemy’s strategies.

3.) Get intimate with God

Lastly, prayer not only increases faith, but it allows us to grow deeper in fellowship with God. It is an intimate experience with God. These prayers will change our insides and also manifest outwardly. “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5: 16 (NIV) When we pray we are able to able grow close to God. It’s the one on one quality time with God that allows us to connect. The more time you fill with Him the more you will be able to hear His voice, feel the Holy Spirit and understand your purpose. When you don’t spend time with Him you won’t know Him. We cannot get so caught up in the religion that we forget the relationship.

So ladies, I encourage you all to keep striving and living for God, remain prayerful and trust God. Build a relationship with God and know that with God on our side the enemy has already been defeated.

I often let fear hold me back from so many opportunities. Whether it is a job opportunity, relationship opportunities and even ministry opportunities. I do this because I don’t have trust in His plan over my life. I will rely on my own abilities first before letting God work in my life. The Bible clearly says:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5

I always said I was too busy or I did not have time. I had so much on my plate, and I did not want to fail. So I decided I was going to try to juggle multiple things at once. The problem was I was so busy doing things that were not kingdom’s work that I often felt emotionally, physically and spiritually drained. When I was spiritually drained, the enemy came in to attack my confidence in God’s power. He’d reiterate the fact that I was so “busy” and that because my time was limited something had to give. One of the first things that went was spending time with God. Here are the excuses I made:

“I’m too busy to read my Bible because I have to work.”

“I’m too busy to pray because I’m tired.”

“I’m too busy to go to church because I have to study.”

The second lie I believed from the enemy was that I was not qualified. Again, because I was fearful of failure and I was relying on my own abilities, I held myself back. Whatever “it” was, “it” was not going to happen.

I had one potential job opportunity where I allowed fear to hold me back and make me feel unqualified. I got to an interview, dressed in a suit and with my résumé in hand. Instead of having confidence, I doubted myself so much that the employer had second thoughts and I did not get the job.

I even did this within ministry. I left ministry positions because I thought I did not have the time to be effective, not trusting that God will help me be effective regardless of my circumstances. What I did not realize is my qualification does not come from man but from God.

“It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God.” 2 Corinthians 3:5

So this year, 2016, and from now on, I will have Fearless Faith. I will no longer let fear hold me back from my purpose and the plan God has over my life.

Here is a how I will have fearless faith this year and moving forward-

Deeper in the Word– I will be intentional about having quiet time and to have consistent prayer. Some people said if I don’t have time I should multitask. This is true but I cannot multitask prayer because I’ll only do one thing well. In order to have faith and a stronger relationship, I need that quiet quality time with Him. So I plan to set time aside to read His word and to pray.

Deeper in my Worship– One area I didn’t realize I have fear in is my worship. I used to believe I can only worship in church or only behind close doors. But now I know I can worship multiple different ways. Now, I will be obedient to how the Holy Spirit is leading me to worship.

To have FAITH– I no longer want to worry about the unknown. Even though I cannot see the future I still need to have faith in God’s plan. I will trust God’s got my back. No matter what I’m going through God will see me through it. Lastly, I will not worry! My go to scripture for this is:

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” Philippians 4:6

I know this is easier said than done, but I I need to remain faithful daily. I sometimes have to say this to myself periodically through the day. This reminds me to stop worrying and give it to God.

I hope this encouraged you all. Remember to have fearless faith, trust God and know He’s got your back.

By Patrice McKenzie
patrice@areyoushe.com

P.S.- Check out this awesome spontaneous worship song by Bethel Music featuring William Matthews

Words cannot even express how blown away I am by God…Last night, I had a dream that a man in a wheelchair got up and walked at my church. Today, that dream manifested in such a powerful way. As we prayed, declared and decreed Mr. Leslie was going to walk in Jesus’ name, he got up out of that wheelchair after being bound to it for 40 years!!! There’s nothing our God can’t do! If you have the faith the size of a mustard seed, God will move mountains!

Christmas is in 2 days! To celebrate Christmas, I want to highlight a significant part in the story of the birth of Jesus Christ- faith in God’s plan! Mary was engaged to Joseph and she was a virgin. However, she still gave birth to the son of God by remaining pure. It was Mary’s God-given purpose to carry and give birth to Jesus. What an honor! Despite her initial puzzlement of God’s plan, she was obedient and had faith in His purpose for her. Even though many did not understand or believe her, she carried her purpose.

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth to tell Mary the good news.

“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David.And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!” (Luke 1:30-33 NLT).

At first she questioned Gabriel’s statement by presenting logic. She told him she was a virgin so she could not be pregnant. Which is common for us to do because we tend to want to lead with our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5) rather than believing God’s supernatural power. But Gabriel reminded Mary of her relative Elizabeth’s miracle. Elizabeth was barren and old in age. She was told she could never have children. But God made it possible. Elizabeth conceived a son when others thought she could not. “For the word of God will never fail.” (Luke 1:37 NLT)

With this remembrance, Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” (Luke 1: 38a NLT)

Her fiance Joseph also had a difficult time understanding how Mary was pregnant. Although he was a believer, he used logical thinking rather than trusting in God’s power. All he knew was his soon to be wife was pregnant and the child was not his. So he decided to divorce Mary quietly. Then an angel came to Joesph in a dream and assured him Mary’s child was from God.